The trial concerning the liquidation of Polonika – a firm that is closely connected to the disgraced Union of Poles in Belarus, was to have been held at the Hrodna Regional Economic Court on 11 October. However, the tax inspection waived its lawsuit at the last moment, as a result of which the case was dropped.

’About 100 people came to support us, including members of the Union of Poles, associates of Andrei Sannikau and Yaraslau Ramanchuk and members of the Belarusian Popular Front. This scared the authorities. They saw that they wouldn’t manage to hold the liquidation quietly and decided to retreat,’ commented the UPB activist Andrei Pachobut.

However, the firm is still obliged to pay $40,000 fine. Polonika received aid from Wspolnota Polska for organization of lessons of the Polish language and advance training programs for teachers and executed it as an economic contract. The court said the money from the Polish organization should have been considered as humanitarian aid, which required a different taxation.